The Plan
by Rina Graywords
Summary: This is a story about Piccolo's birthday. Since he first hatched, Piccolo's birthday has been a day overshadowed by the voice and memory of his father, Piccolo Daimaou. Fifteen years later, his friends try to change all of that.
1. Visions of Daimaou

Author's Note: For those who will read this and clearly do not know who the character Son Chi-Me is, she is a character created by my best friend. Chi-Me belong to her, and her alone. She is the twin sister of Son Gohan, and thus Goku and Chi-Chi's daughter. As a general rule of thumb, she's been through everything that Gohan has, and has found an almost second father figure in Piccolo through his training. Personality wise, she is a very determined half saiyan that has risen to every challenge put in front of her. However, if you want to know more about her, I recommend that you read about her and find out for yourself.

**The Plan**

**Part I**

_The battle has begun. Both warriors are both being worn down by the fighting. The large green namek sends a rock at his young saiyan opponent, shredding the boys arm. In pain the boy cries out as a second rock takes out his one good leg, causing him to fall. "I can't...stand up...ungh...my legs..."_

_The namek laughs. "I thought you said you had a great power, boy! Look at you...helpless on the ground." He smiles and tosses aside the three-eyed Tien, as he prepares for the final blow._

"_Goku!" Tien yells out._

_Goku is now powering up a kame-hame-ha with one hand. "This better work. Please have it be enough to destroy Piccolo." He says under his breath._

_Then Piccolo yells out, "Shinu!' His beam clashes with Goku's beam, and now Goku is completely spent. Piccolo prepares to go for the kill, but Goku leaps. Koran's holy water had finally kicked in! In a desperate scream, Goku propels himself straight through Piccolo's chest with a kame-hame-ha._

"_No!!!" Piccolo screams and blood is spat out of his mouth. Before he dies, a single large egg comes out of his mouth. The egg goes far into the mountains. In his last moments of life Piccolo sends a message telepathically to the egg. "Avenge my death, my son. Kill this Goku for me. You must... Train hard to kill the boy who has killed me. Kill him Piccolo! Kill him..."_

_Then the demon King, Piccolo Daimaou fell limp and died. And his message of hate was passed on._

------

Piccolo's eyes shot open. Drops of cold sweet were dripping down his forehead. It was 5:00 in the morning and visions of his father still filled his mind. Every year this would happen. Every year he had to relive the visions of his father's death. He hated the visions. He hated his father for giving him the command to kill Goku. He hated the annual reminder of the monster he had become for the first 14 years of his life.

He had tried to put the memories behind him, like all he friends had, but he couldn't forget. The visions would always return to him on May 9th. The day it had all happened, his birthday.

Suddenly from behind him, Piccolo sensed two small powers approaching slowly from behind. He smiled. Here they go again, Piccolo thought. As much as he hated being bothered early in the morning, he guessed he could use a little fun and games to get his mind off the visions. When the two warriors were about ready to pounce, Piccolo said in a low tone, "Gohan...Chi-Me..." He felt the two Saiyans stop in their tracks. He continued. "What have I told you two countless numbers of times about showing up her before sunrise?" His back was still turned to them.

Gohan and Chi-Me cringed but held their ground. The two warriors, with a look of carefulness on their faces, stepped foreword, their dark saiyan eyes glinting in the darkness. Soon Chi-Me opened her mouth to speak.

"Piccolo...we were only-" Chi-Me was cut off because Piccolo had turned around to face them with a sneering look spread across his narrow face. She fell silent again.

"You came to train." He paused and allowed for a look of relaxation enter Gohan and Chi-Me's faces, when he continued in a stern voice. "After I deliberately told you to do otherwise."

It was Gohan's turn to talk. "Uh...Mr. Piccolo..." he was stopped short by a blow to the ribs from his sister. He got the message. "Piccolo, Daddy kicked us out of the house," the young saiyan confessed. "So we came here."

Well this was a surprise. Why would Goku send them out of the house at 5:00 in the morning? Giving them a demanding look, Piccolo asked them, "why? You better not be hiding anything from me Gohan."

Gohan then sported that look of his. His look of pure innocence. Then he said, "it's the truth, Piccolo, Daddy kicked us out." I don't know why." He said, looking up at Piccolo with huge innocent, baby saiyan eyes.

Piccolo cringed. If looks could kill, he thought. Damn kid. Something in that look made him believe every word the boy had said. Either I'm becoming soft, or I'm going crazy. Piccolo thought. Falling victim to such childish rubbish. It was ridiculous.

"Are you mad at us, Piccolo?" Gohan asked sheepishly.

"We just thought we could come here because Dad kicked us out. That's alright, isn't it?" Chi-Me asked, a little more confidant than Gohan.

"No. I said no training with me until after sunrise." Piccolo said sternly. "You two are never fully awake, and I want to get some more meditating in this morning."

"But Piccolo..." They started to say.

"Don't 'but Piccolo' me. Why don't you two go home. I'll take you." Piccolo said back to them.

"No! You can't do that!!" Gohan shouted.

"Why not?" Piccolo asked, confused. Why didn't they want to go home? Or was it that they didn't want _him_ taking them?

"No particular reason." Chi-Me said quickly. "Dad just...wants us out of the way."

Who did she think she was fooling? Something was up. Piccolo was sure of that. But what was she hiding?

"How about we meditate then, until the sun comes up?" Gohan suggested.

------

For about the next two hours the three meditated. Or rather two of the three did. After about the first 20 minutes or so, Gohan had fallen asleep. It was now about 7:15am, and the sun was slowly rising above the horizon. Gohan was starting to awaken, but Chi-Me was still deep in meditation. Piccolo felt the warmth of the sun on his back. It felt so warm, so comforting. Then it came again. That voice. "Kill him Piccolo! Kill him!"

The voice was low and course sounding, as it thundered in Piccolo's mind. "Avenge my death, my son." Fractions of the visions passed before him. Then the voice of this father came again. Louder this time. "You must!!" Piccolo beard his teeth. Then, as suddenly as they had come, the voice and the visions vanished. In their place was blackness. As if nothing had ever happened.

------

When he opened his eyes again, Piccolo saw that Gohan and Chi-Me were both looking at him with a deep look of concern. He looked away from their glances, and looked at the sky. It was now 7:30am, and the sun shown brightly over the ground as it sparkled off the sweat drops that had formed on his forehead because of his encounter. What had Gohan and Chi-Me seen? He must have done something; otherwise they wouldn't be looking at him as they were.

"Piccolo, are you alright?" Gohan asked in a caring tone.

"Yeah Piccolo, are you feeling ok?" Chi-Me added in after Gohan.

For a moment, Piccolo paused. How was he supposed to answer this? He couldn't tell them about the visions, even if they were his closest friends. Then he answered, forcing a smile. "Don't worry about me. I'm fine." Piccolo lied in a stern voice. Quickly changing the subject he said more calmly. "I thought the two of you came here to work, not stand around like babies and talk sentimental rubbish all morning." Slowly he stood up.

Gohan and Chi-Me looked at each other, smiling. Then they looked back at Piccolo with a strong look of readiness on their faces.

Piccolo flexed his hands, with a smile of satisfaction across his face. Then he continued. "Alright then. If you two 'think' you are ready, let's begin." An evil smile shone on his face. Let's see if these two can break a sweat today; maybe even get my mind off the past, he thought to himself.

To be continued...


	2. Enter Vegeta

Author's Note: -sigh- Man this story is old... I still like it though. Can we tell that Piccolo's my favorite character? -innocent grin- But anyway, I hope some enjoyment comes from reading this little story I have here. Oddly enough, a lot of planning went into "The Plan" itself. Things such as who has what shift when, and little things like that that kept my 15 year old self, man that was a long time ago, occupied. This was also before I had taken any Japanese classes in High School, let alone college, so this certainly predated any abilities on my part to use extensive Japanese vocabulary in my stories. I think what I knew actually came from a Vegeta site. On it was a Japanese word section called "Japanese for bakas." It was great. Good everyday words like baka, shimatta, shinde, and kisama. (To those of you who know Nihongo, you are allowed to laugh...) -deep sigh- Gomen nasai...

**The Plan**

**Part II**

"What in Kami's name do you think you're doing?!!!" Bulma shouted at Oolong, who was attempting to put up streamers around the Son House.

"Well, I was putting up these streamers, before you came along." Oolong said as he looked up at Bulma. "And I was doing pretty good too!" The pig added in.

"I thought we agreed on the color order already, you insolent swine!" Bulma yelled down at the pig. "It was going to be green, pink, blue, purple. Not green, purple, blue, pink!" She was glaring down at Oolong. "Got that PIG?!!"

"What difference does it make, Bulma? I never wanted to do this anyway!" The pig said back.

"You never want to do anything, Oolong."

"What's going on in here?" Puar said as she flew in. "Oolong, what have you done this time?"

"It's her!" Oolong said, pointing to Bulma.

"Why you ungrateful little..." Bulma sneered, looking like she was going to strangle him.

"Guys, guys... settle down..." Roshi pleaded in a comforting tone. "It's only about three hours into this thing, let's not get at each other's necks now!" He had just come from the kitchen, and had a flour blotted apron on over his yellow Hawaiian shirt.

"What's the point of all this anyway? Piccolo never..." Oolong started to say, but Bulma cut him off before he can finish.

"Because Gohan got the idea in his head! How many times do I have to say it, you swine?!" Bulma exploded. "Now you can either do as we're telling you to do, or you can take it up with Gohan." She paused for a moment to let it sink into Oolongs thick skull, "Now, what was that you were saying Oolong?" She said with a hint of evil in her voice.

Oolong only mumbled to himself and continued putting up the colored streamers. This time he put them in the right order.

Then there was a sound of crashing pots and pans, followed by the unmistakable voice of Chi-Chi. She was yelling at Krillin for not mixing something right.

"Just give it here! Nobody can do anything right in this house! I just asked you to do one simple thing, and could you do it?! No!!!" She yelled as she picked up the fallen dishes and proceeded to chase Krillin out of the kitchen.

"But Chi-Chi..." Krillin started to say.

"Get OUT!!!!!" Chi-Chi screamed.

Krillin ran out of the room, and crouched behind an armchair so that he wouldn't be hit by Chi-Chi if she decided to throw something in his general direction. He may be a top class fighter, but he knew better than to mess with the strongest woman on the planet.

Chi-Chi stood steaming by the kitchen doorway and continued to give commands to everyone. "Let that be a lesson to all of you! Either do things right or get out as fast as you can!! Do you hear me?! Well!!!"

In unison, everyone in the room nodded and quickly got back to work. Krillin waited until Chi-Chi had gone back to the kitchen to prepare the rest of the food and drinks. Then, slowly, he got out of his hiding spot, and walked out back to help Tien and Yamcha with their job of setting up the fighting mats. "I'll do anything as long as it's away from Chi-Chi..." Krillin thought.

"Yo, Krillin!" Yamcha cheerfully greeted Krillin. "Do ya mind lending us a hand?"

Krillin walked up to the mats and looked at what they had done. "Looks to me like you two have already finished." Krillin said as he ran his had down one of the hard pads.

"Well..." Yamcha continued, "Tien and me were wondering if we should put up some chairs or benches around the edge or without, like at the Strongest under the Heavens Tournament, and just have everybody standing?"

"Depends on how long the fight takes." Krillin answered. "But knowing Piccolo, I'd say put up some seats."

"That's what I thought," Yamcha admitted, "but Tien thinks it would be better if it resembled the real thing."

"Goku's going up against him, right?" Krillin asked.

"Unless the plans have changed." Tien said.

"I don't get it..." Krillin said. 'I thought this whole thing was resolved a long time ago. Why start it up again and relive the past? I say if an old scab is already healed, don't go picking at it again. Just leave the past where it belongs."

"I never thought about it that way." Tien remarked. "This tournament was supposed to be something we thought Piccolo would enjoy."

"Not a horror ride experience." Yamcha added in.

"I don't know you guys," Krillin said in a worried tone. "I mean, what's Piccolo going to think of all this? It's not like anyone has ever pulled something together like this for him before. He might not know what to make of it all. And don't you think he'll suspect something's up after a while?"

Yamcha just smiled and shook his head. "You worry too much, Krillin. This whole thing will turn out just fine. And if Piccolo does react like you think he will, a little change of pace will do the ol' namek some good!"

"I hope you're right." Krillin said flatly. He paused and then a sparkle lit up his eyes. "Hey, Gohan and Chi-Me's watch is almost up, right?"

Tien answered him after a pause. "Yeah. Only about ten more minutes and their shift is up. Why?"

Yamcha caught on. "Tien, do you remember whose shift is after theirs?" He said smiling.

"I think it's Vegeta..." Tien answered.

"Exactly! I'd love to see the look on Piccolo's face when he shows up." Yamcha remarked. "That should keep him busy for a while!"

"Speaking of Vegeta, have you seen that monkey at all today?" Krillin asked them.

"Now that you mention it, I haven't." Yamcha answered. "But he's probably out somewhere either training or waiting for his part in the whole thing to come into play."

Then from inside came the ear-breaking sound of Chi-Chi yelling at Roshi. Tien, Yamcha, and Krillin exchanged happy glances and then Krillin shrugged his shoulders and said, "here we go again."

------

Meanwhile, Vegeta stood in the shade of a rocky cliff and watched the two saiyans and namek spar. He made sure to keep out of view and his power level down low enough so Piccolo couldn't sense his presence. "Almost time..." The prince said in a low voice so not to be heard by Piccolo's keen namekian ears. "Just a little longer and then it's my turn," he thought with a grin, "my turn to have a little fun." His grin grew wider as he thought about it. Then he continued watching the three warriors spar, waiting as the minutes slowly passed by. And to Vegeta, they seemed to be taking nothing short of forever.

Just as Piccolo was in the middle of a combination drill using his eye lasers and some swift beam blasts, Vegeta came into view. He hovered directly above the three of them. Soon, he descended and eventually allowed his feet to touch the ground. Piccolo looked at the saiyan prince with an untrusting glare. What did he think he was doing interrupting his training session like this? "What the hell do you think you're doing here, Vegeta?! This is my training ground, so get the..." Piccolo said in a harsh commanding voice, but was cut off by Vegeta.

"Tsk tsk..." Vegeta taunted calmly. "I haven't come here for that, Piccolo." Vegeta stated, "I have come with a message from Kakarrot to give to these two." Motioning towards Gohan and Chi-Me.

"My father's name is GOKU!" Chi-Me said with satisfaction.

"His name, foolish child, **is **Kakarrot. Now, he commands that you two are to return home at once." Vegeta snapped back at her.

As if on cue, Gohan joined in. "What did he go on and tell you for, Vegeta?" Gohan said in a strong voice he rarely used on anyone, let alone Vegeta.

Piccolo was surprised at this. What was going on here? Gohan would never speak up to Vegeta like that. But Vegeta didn't look in the least way angered, and Gohan looked as if he'd done this everyday of his life. Something was up, Piccolo thought. Were they planning something?

Before he had time to think anymore about it, he was cut off by Gohan and Chi-Me talking to him. "Piccolo, we have to go." Chi-Me said.

"Sorry, but Daddy needs us now." Gohan added in.

"Catch ya later!" Chi-Me said cheerfully.

Both of them were in the air about ten feet away, ready to take off. Just when they were about to go, Piccolo flew directly in front of them and they stopped in their tracks. Both had a look of intense fear on their faces. "P...P...Piccolo..." they stammered.

"What are you hiding from me?!" He commanded in a voice that demanded an answer. "Answer me!! What are..."

"Nothing! Nothing Piccolo! Dad just wants us to go home now, and sent Vegeta to tell us." Chi-Me said in a frantic tone. "That's all."

"If it's nothing, then why are you looking at me like that?!" Piccolo said sternly.

Gohan and Chi-Me fell silent.

"Well?!" Piccolo said impatiently.

"From the way you're looking at them, I'm not surprised." Vegeta said in a clam yet mocking tone. "Maybe if you would give them a chance to speak without you barking at them for every comment, they would give you the information that you desire.'

A little bit of relief spread through Gohan and Chi-Me's faces. However, it vanished as soon as Piccolo spoke again, as harsh as ever.

"And what gives you the authority to tell me what to do, Vegeta?"

"I wasn't telling, I was stating a fact." Vegeta answered.

"Let's go..." Gohan said softly to Chi-Me.

"Wait," she said back to Gohan. She gulped and looked up at the enraged Piccolo. "Piccolo." She said carefully.

"What?" He said, still glaring at Vegeta, and not even looking at her.

"We really have to go. Dad needs us at home. Please?" She asked as carefully as before.

"What does he need you so badly for?" Piccolo asked, calmer than before, but still not taking his eyes from Vegeta.

"He needs our help at home. We're working on something, and he needs our help to finish it." Chi-Me admitted.

"Is there something special about doing it today?" Piccolo asked her. He got no answer. "I take it that's all you're going to tell me. All right then, go. Go home to your father." He looked at her strait in the eyes as he said this. A look of anger showed in his intense eyes.

She winced; it was clearly not the answer she was looking for. "Ok, c'mon Gohan. Dad's probably wondering where we are." She turned away from Piccolo and then back at Gohan.

"Right." Gohan said back to her. Both of them slowly flew about ten feet and then looked back.

"See you later Piccolo." They said in unison, and then flew off in the direction of their house.

As soon as they were out of namekian ear range, Chi-Me spoke again. "This just keeps getting harder. I hope the whole thing works out."

"Don't worry, it will. In a few hours it will all be over." Gohan said and tried to sound confidant. "I hope." He added in.

"I hope so too. He deserves this, but I sure hope he doesn't get too suspicious before we're ready." Chi-Me said as they flew on. "I just wish two o'clock wasn't so far away."

"Ditto." Gohan agreed.

"Hey!" Chi-Me said in a much happier tone. "Race ya home!"

"Yeah!" Gohan remarked cheerfully as well. "Last one home has to help Mom in the kitchen!"

"You're on!" Chi-Me said, accepting the challenge. She blasted into hyper-drive and the two raced towards their home. Soon they were both out of sight.

To be continued...


	3. Piccolo san Daisuki

Author's Note: I hope everyone's liking the crazy old story of mine. I've considered revamping it, one of these days, but who knows. It's fine the way it is, not perfect, but then what is, right? But anyway, college midterms just happened today, so you can say my brain's a little fried. Just a tad. Yet I post. Why? Because it's not related to school in any way shape or form, and because it exists. One last thing before I let you read the actual story is that when I was writing this story back in my freshman year of high school, my goal was to have it finished by his birthday. And I managed it, starting on my birthday, which is February 14th. It was just a crazy little idea that popped into my head after reading this other fan fiction, which is actually one of my favorites of all time, called "Remember Me". It's a Ronin Warrior's fan fiction about Anubis's birthday, which is actually just four days before Piccolo's, if anyone cares. So on Children's Day. But that's where this all got started. Oh, and I just noticed that for some reason the section breaks that I have on the word documents aren't showing up here on , so either I'll figure something out or you'll all have to continue being confused. The second option, I don't like, but for now at least you all will have to try and figure it all out. Good luck, and happy reading.

**The Plan**

**Part III**

Piccolo still looked in the direction that they had left. His teeth and fists firmly clenched. "This day just keeps getting better..." he thought.

"Hey! While I'm here, how about you and I go all out, one on one." Vegeta suggested with a grin.

Piccolo smiled, closing his eyes.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Vegeta asked.

Piccolo turned to face Vegeta. "Is that a challenge Vegeta?"

"Unless you're too much of a coward to accept it." Vegeta answered.

"Bring it on!" Piccolo said as he got into a fighting stance and prepared for his second sparing session that day." Let's see if you can get me to break a sweat."

Vegeta smiled and then lifted his hands in the air, powering up. As soon as he was finished, he looked at Piccolo. He held up his right hand, palm faced towards his namekian opponent. "Prepare yourself for... the wrath of a saiyan!!!!" With that, their battle began. Vegeta sent his blast at Piccolo, who easily blocked it, and sent a few stronger blasts back in return. Then the hand-to-hand combat began.

Vegeta flew at Piccolo at top speed and threw a left jab at him. Piccolo countered that and kicked the saiyan prince flying through the air and back against a rocky cliff face. But he was right back with an elbow right into Piccolo's knee. With that, Piccolo elevated above Vegeta and blasted down with machine-gun type energy blasts. Vegeta soon recovered from the shock of the blasts and sent a large beam from his hand. Piccolo just smiled and sent a beam of his own that canceled Vegeta's out. "Don't tell me that's all you have left in you Vegeta!" Piccolo said as he sent another attack.

"I'm just getting warmed up!" Vegeta remarked and started attacking again. This time he let loose a powerful beam from his right hand with his left hand held tightly around his wrist for support. Piccolo dodged the beam, only to move directly behind Vegeta. He grasped both hands tightly together and pounded down on Vegeta's skull. The arrogant prince was sent falling downwards very dazed.

Piccolo flew down beside Vegeta as he fell, and grabbed him by both his arms and torso. He smiled at the helpless saiyan, bearing his gleaming white and sharp teeth. "Oh Vegeta, I should tell you something."

"And...what might...that be?" Vegeta said as he tried to break loose while looking his namek captor strait in the eyes.

"I haven't even started yet." Piccolo said in a clear and strong low voice. The ground was coming fast, and Vegeta knew it. He clenched his teeth, preparing for the impact. Then, just before they hit ground, Piccolo let his hold on Vegeta go and flew upwards, leaving the saiyan free.

In a split second, Vegeta put out his now free hands and did a sort of back flip to land on his feet again. He looked up, Piccolo was levitated 10 feet above him, arms crossed and smiling with a mix of both satisfaction and cruelty. The namek's eyes were narrow but shown bright with an evil glare shining down at the saiyan prince. Vegeta glared back at him, and soon a smile shown on his face as well.

"By the way, there's something I've been meaning to tell you as well." Vegeta said with dignity.

"And that might that be?" Piccolo asked without hesitation.

"I haven't even begun to get started yet, either!" Vegeta yelled as he launched another head-on attack on Piccolo.

------

"I hate this..." Gohan grumbled as he dried a bowl that he had just washed. Chi-Me looked in through the kitchen door and smiled in at her brother. Dish soap clung to his clothes, apron, and hair, and his hands were wet with warm and soapy water. He looked away from her and back into the sink full of dirty dishes. "Why did I have to loose?" Gohan thought to himself.

"Oh Gohan? Have you finished with those dishes yet?" Chi-Chi asked him from the other side of the room. She was taking a huge cake out of the oven while she waited for Gohan to answer.

Gohan looked up. "I'm almost done!" Gohan answered in a cheerful voice.

"Good. After you finish you can help me put the frosting on the cake. After it cools off, of course." Chi-Chi said to her son.

Gohan smiled, "OK!" He cheerfully said to his mother's offer. Then he silently grumbled and went back to washing his ever-growing pile of dirty dishes. "Eating dinner is a lot easier than making it," he said into the bubbles and water.

------

Chi-Me walked away from the kitchen and headed towards her room. "Well, Gohan's sure got his work cut out for him," she said to herself. "But this whole thing was his idea." She opened the door and walked over to the bunk bed she and Gohan shared. When she reached the ladder, she climbed up to her top bunk and crawled over to her pillow. As soon as she reached it, the young saiyan moved it aside to reveal a single sheet of loose-leaf paper and a pencil. She listened carefully to make sure nobody was around and then satisfied, picked up the paper and pencil. "I hope he likes it." Chi-Me said as she held up the paper. "Now all I have to do is finish writing it."

The paper she held out in front of her had on it the beginning of a poem. Chi-Me had been working hard on it in her free time for a week, but still hadn't come up with the right ending. It would be her gift to Piccolo, a gift from the heart. "Now, about that ending..." she said to herself as she held the pencil in her hand and raised the lead over the paper, ready to write. So far it read...

Piccolo San Daisuki

_Love,_

_Friendship,_

_Inseparable partners,_

_It's an unbreakable bond._

_You have always been there for me,_

_And I will always be there for you._

_You have taught me so much,_

_So much in such a short time._

_I started out weak, timid, and afraid,_

_But you have made me strong._

_You brought out the warrior in me._

_The warrior that was locked up inside for so long,_

_And waiting to be set free._

_Without you I would be lost,_

_I would be afraid,_

_I would be nothing._

_You've shown me the strength in our friendship,_

_You've shown me how to fight,_

_You've shown me that I can do anything,_

_And you've shown me how to grow._

_Everyday and night I feel you're by my side,_

_Watching to make sure that I stay safe from harm,_

_I try my very best to make you proud, _

_And it flatters me when you smile to show me that I have,_

_I want to thank you for those times,_

_And I'm proud to say that you're my trainer._

"I can't just stop there." Chi-Me said, frustrated after all her hard work and

thinking. "Maybe two more stanzas...yeah!" She thought for a moment and then said, "I've got it!" She continued writing, and quickly was finished with another stanza. After a moment's pause she started on a new line and soon completed another stanza. But it still wasn't enough. "It's still missing something...but what?" She sat there for a long time, reading the poem over and over again. But she still felt it was missing something. Was she missing something so obvious that she just plain overlooked it?

She stared at the paper. Thinking hard about the task at hand. Then it hit her.

"You know, that just might work. The title, it's perfect. And it even rhymes! How could I have missed that?!"

Quickly she wrote down the last line of the poem and read it through one more

time...

..._Somehow I want to thank you for all you've done._

_I want to find a way to give it all back to you,_

_In hopes to be the perfect warrior,_

_And the perfect friend._

You mean so much to me,

_And no matter what, you're always in my heart,_

_Deep down within my soul._

_And I just want you to remember,_

_Through the sun and rainy weather._

_No matter where you are,_

_Or where I may be,_

_I am part of you,_

_As you are part of me._

_Piccolo san daisuki._

"Perfect!" Chi-Me exclaimed proudly. "I hope he likes it. I've worked so hard on it, and now it's finally done. All I have to do now, is wrap it in something and wait for the party to start." She slipped her feet over the side of the bed and jumped down to the floor. "I wonder how Vegeta's doing?" She looked over towards the digital clock on their dresser. It read 9:30 am. "His shift is half over now. I guess things are going ok. Only four more hours to go."

With that, Chi-Me walked out of her room, poem in hand.

"Are you ready to give up yet, Vegeta?" Piccolo mocked the saiyan prince. "You can't win." He looked down at Vegeta, who had fallen to the ground, face down. Piccolo smiled as he struggled to get up.

"If you truly believe that you have beaten me...you're dead wrong..." Vegeta said as he pushed his way to his feet again. A small cut had opened on his lip, and a trickle of blood ran down his chin. Without taking his eyes from Piccolo, Vegeta wiped the blood away.

"That's big talk coming from such a little man. Give up before you get yourself hurt." Piccolo advised.

"Never." Vegeta answered. "I'm a saiyan, I will never give up and I will never surrender. I will beat you."

"Your saiyan pride will be your downfall, Vegeta." Piccolo said back. "Give up now, and I'll let you go in peace." He offered.

"I already told you. I will never give up, I will win!" With that, Vegeta started fighting againIt won't be you who has the last laugh."

------

'Hey...Choazu. Any sign of him yet?' Goku asked telepathically as Choazu flew around in the distance watching for any sign of Piccolo.

'Not yet, Goku. Vegeta must be doing his job, and keeping Piccolo from getting suspicious.' Answered Choazu as he continued surveying the land below him.

'That's good. Remember now...' Goku started to comment, but Choazu's mind voice interrupted him.

'...As soon as you see Piccolo, tell you ASAP. I know Goku, you've told me already.' Choazu told him.

'That, and if we resort to plan B, I'll tell you.' Goku added in.

'That is 'if' we do plan B.'

'Right.' Goku said, and then disconnected his telepathic link with Choazu. He looked blankly at the forest around him. "That all depends on how quickly the preparations can be made.

To be continued...


	4. Change In The Plan

Author's Note: This little story is almost done, isn't it? One more part after this, and we're good. I'm curious, what else do readers who pass by think of this old story of mine? I changed one detail in this story, thanks to reviews, that being Piccolo's age. Technically, Piccolo is five years older than both Gohan and Chi-Me, which would make the two of them almost 10, since their birthday is somewhere in the middle of May. I had Piccolo turning 25, even though I knew it wasn't correct, because for the people who don't know about Dragonball, a full-grown 15 year old may seem a bit strange. But, now, this story is once again technically correct, so thank you for pointing out my chosen error. Oh, and as a parting comment, I did figure out how to make section breaks, even though they look a bit stupid in my compromised form. So I'll look into changing all the previous chapters to make up for that confusion. I hope you all like this second to last section. Happy reading.

**The Plan**

**Part IV**

Bulma walked into the room where Chi-Me was finishing wrapping her gift. She was tying a dark green ribbon around the neatly wrapped in purple and blue Happy Birthday wrapping paper. "Hey Chi-Me," Bulma said kindly. "Is that your present to Piccolo that you're wrapping there?"

"That's right!" Chi-Me said proudly.

"It looks small, what are you giving him?" Bulma asked.

"If you really need to know, it's a poem that I've been working very hard on lately for him. I sure hope he likes it. I've worked so hard." She confessed.

"I'm sure he will," Bulma assured her. "Even if he doesn't 5how it. Oh, and when you're done, put it on the table with the others, and come help the rest of us with the preparations."

"All right, Bulma," Chi-Me answered.

With a wink, Bulma left the room, and went back to watching over the party arrangers to make sure everybody was doing the right thing. Chi-Me put the card on the fully wrapped gift, and looked it over. Pleased, she stood up and walked back into the family room and put her gift with the others that lay there. "I wonder who the other presents are from?" She asked herself. She then read the names on the cards. "One from Dad, one from Gohan, one from all of us...he's gonna get a kick out of that one, Yamcha and Puar, Tien and Choazu, Krillin, and the last one's from...what? Vegeta?! It can't be! But that's what it is...weird. I wonder what it could be?" She said and thought about it for a moment. But she was soon interrupted by a noise from behind.

"Hey, Chi-Me! Wanna help me out with the cake icing?"

It was Gohan, looking out the kitchen door at his sister, awaiting her response.

She looked away from the presents and looked at her brother, then answered. "Sure Gohan! I'll be there in a minute!"

"Ok! Meet you in here as soon as you're ready!" Gohan said cheerfully and slipped back inside the kitchen.

Chi-Me looked back at the pile of gifts and then at the one from Vegeta. "I guess I'll just have to wait and find out what's in there later." She told herself. "Now about that cake!"

With that, Chi-Me ran into the kitchen to help with the icing of the huge cake, still deep in thought about what Vegeta's gift could possibly be.

-----

"No...No...over a little more to the left...that's it...yes...NO!" Bulma said as she directed Yamcha and Tien in putting up a banner.

"Make up your mind, Bulma!" Yamcha complained. "Just tell us when the damn thing's centered, ok?"

"Or is that too much for you to handle?" Tien added in.

"That's what I was trying to do, but you kept on moving too far to the left!" Bulma insisted.

They moved it over a little bit to the right and then Yamcha said, "Is that better now?"

Bulma looked at it for a moment, and then said in a satisfied voice, "Perfect!"

"Finally..." Tien said flatly. "Now what?"

Yamcha looked down at Krillin, who was blowing up balloons. Then he called down to him. "Hey Krillin, mind lending us a hand again?"

Krillin looked up at them, a light blue balloon in his mouth. He pinched the end and took it out, then said, "what do you want me to do?"

"You see that tape there?" Bulma asked Krillin, pointing to a roll of tape.

"Yes." Krillin answered.

"Take off two pieces, and put them on the corners Tien and Yamcha are holding up." Bulma told him.

"What the woman says." Yamcha remarked.

"Ok," Krillin agreed. He walked over to the roll of tape and picked it up. After ripping off the pieces, he elevated up to the banner, and placed the tape on the corners like Bulma told him to do. "There." He said when he was finished.

"Looks great!" Bulma commented.

Yamcha and Tien then got down from their ladders. "Ok, now what do we do?" Tien asked.

"You can help me blow up the balloons." Krillin offered. He walked back to his spot on the floor and continued to blow up the balloon he was blowing up before.

"That's all right, we can leave that job to you, Krillin." Yamcha answered.

"Thanks a lot..." Krillin said sarcastically as he tied the balloon.

------

"Oops..."

"Oops, what?" Chi-Me asked her brother. Gohan was supposed to be mixing icing to put on the top of the cake. "What happened?"

A single glance gave that answer away. The emerald-green icing had somehow spilled onto the counter top. "What did you do, Gohan?" Chi-Me asked impatiently.

"It wasn't mixing fast enough, so I..." he answered.

"You stirred too fast, and the frosting mysteriously flew out of the bowl..." Chi-Me finished.

Gohan smiled weakly.

"Well we better clean it up. Just put the bowl down, and be careful. Luckily for you, Mom left to go outside for a minute." Chi-Me warned.

They got a wet towel and wiped the frosting off the counter. Then Gohan went back to mixing, this time slower.

------

An hour later, Vegeta's shift was almost up. However, he and Piccolo were still deeply engrossed in their sparing session, and he didn't realize how close it was to the end of his turn. Krillin was on his way tot he battle field, ready to start his shift and play his next part in the full plan. When he got close enough, he descended and walked the remaining distance to where Vegeta had been waiting three hours earlier. Then he sat down in the shade of the high-rocky cliff, and waited.

'Krillin, you there?'

"Goku?!" Krillin almost blurted out, but stopped himself just in tome. 'Goku?' He thought.

'Yes, Krillin, it's me.' Goku answered in Krillin's mind. 'You need to come back to the house, now.'

'Now? But it's almost my shift. What's going on, Goku?' Krillin asked.

'Plan B,' answered Goku. 'As you should know almost everything is completed, so we can start a little early.'

'How much earlier?'

'We'll start at noon.'

'But that's an hour away!'

'I know that, but things would be a lot less confusing if Vegeta just lengthens his shift and you come back.' Goku added in.

'So what you're saying is so Piccolo doesn't suspect anything, I should come back and Vegeta will take the remaining hour.' Krillin stated back to Goku.

'Basically.'

'And trust Vegeta in the most vital moments of our plan?!' Krillin asked worriedly.

'Yes.'

'That's nuts!'

'Trust me, Krillin.'

'Alright Goku, I just hope you know what you're doing.' Krillin agreed.

'Thanks Krillin.' Goku remarked kindly, and then with that, he disconnected their telepathic link.

Krillin thought about this for a moment. This whole plan now rested in the hands of Vegeta. There wasn't a strong foundation to this idea that Krillin could see. But if Goku thought it would work... "Well, I guess I better get back then." Krillin said quietly and then looked at Vegeta from his rocky vantage point. "Good luck Vegeta. We're counting on you." Krillin thought so not to be heard by either Vegeta or Piccolo. "Damn I hope this works." And with that, Krillin turned around and headed back towards the Son House.

------

Piccolo and Vegeta kept on sparing, neither one gaining the upper hand for more than five minutes at a time. Soon another hour passed by, and the b5ttle between them stayed the same. Piccolo would gain the upper hand, and then Vegeta would get it right back.

'Vegeta.'

Goku's voice thundered in Vegeta's mind, and his guard was put down. This gave Piccolo a chance to send another attack at the saiyan prince. At the last moment, Vegeta dodged his attack and shot up high into the air to buy him more time. "Kakarrot?" Vegeta asked, looking frantically around for a sign of Goku.

'Yes Vegeta. I'm talking to you telepathically. All you have to do is think your words and they'll get through.' Goku explained.

'What is it Kakarrot?! I'm sort of busy at the moment...' Vegeta thought as he blocked another one of Piccolo's attacks. 'So get on with it!'

'I understand that Vegeta, now listen...'

'And wasn't Krillin supposed to show up a while ago?!' Vegeta thundered back at Goku.

'Listen to me, Vegeta.' Goku demanded. 'We're all ready over here, to start the party. So we're switching to plan B. Basically you have to guide Piccolo over towards me, dart out of there and then I'll take over. Got that?' Goku asked quickly.

'No problem, Kakarrot. But, how do I know he'll follow me?' Vegeta asked back.

'Just get his attention and fly away. He should follow you. And you know the drill after I take over, right?'

'Yes Kakarrot. I can handle it.' Vegeta assured him, as he blasted an attack at Piccolo to counter a beam the namek had sent at him. 'Just make sure you're ready!'

'Alright Vegeta, just be sure he follows you.'

'Kakarrot! I can handle it!' Vegeta repeated, and darted under Piccolo and again flew high above him. He concentrated a large amount of energy and shot it down at Piccolo, who effortlessly countered the blast.

'Vegeta, it's up to you.' Goku told him, and then disconnected their link.

Vegeta smiled. Then he looked down at Piccolo and said with satisfaction. "Let's take this battle to a new location. Unless you're ready to give up of course."

Piccolo returned his smile. "If you truly think you will have a chance anywhere, against me, lead on. It makes no difference to me." Piccolo answered with confidence.

"Alright then. Try to keep up with my saiyan speed." Vegeta challenged him.

Piccolo only smiled at this. "Don't you worry about me, worry about yourself." Piccolo said back.

The two warriors smiled at each other and then Vegeta lead the way towards the Son House. He looked back once or twice to make sure Piccolo was following, and then strongly flew onward. "That's it Piccolo, just keep following me." Vegeta smiled again in satisfaction of how smoothly his job was going. "Just a little longer now and that foolish child's plan can go into motion."

To be continued... 


	5. Realization Of The Plan

Author's Note: So this is the end of the story known as The Plan. I hope this chapter proves to be worth reading it to the end. I'd like to know more about what you all think of it. For anyone who cares, I actually finished this story on Piccolo's birthday, which gave me a great sense of accomplishment. I also had a lot of fun with the presents that everyone got for Piccolo, yes, presents. What he will do with these presents, even he doesn't know, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Either way, I hope this section is as fun to read as it was for me to wrap it up. In the end, it's nice to know people care about you, isn't it? We've all been there. So have fun making your way through the rest of this, and thank you Crimson1 for your support.

**The Plan**

**Part V**

'Any sign of them yet, Choazu?'

'No Goku, nothing. But I'll keep my eyes open.' Choazu answered as he flew around in search of any sign at all of Vegeta and Piccolo.

'You do that, Choazu.'

'And if I see anything, I'll tell you.' Choazu assured Goku. He continued looking all around, and then in the distance he saw a glint of light. 'Goku, I think I see them! They're coming this way!'

'Good. Alright Choazu, are you sure it's them?'

Choazu looked hard and then answered, 'positive, Goku. It's them.'

'Great! Ok, get undercover now, and make sure you keep out of sight.'

'Right Goku!' Choazu agreed, and darted under the cover of the forest below.

'Now go to the house and tell everyone to get ready.'

'Got it!' Choazu commented, and then flew on towards the Son House, making sure to keep his power level down.

'Come on Vegeta,' Goku thought. 'Just a little more and you're here. That's it.'

------

Vegeta kept leading Piccolo closer and closer to where Goku waited. Just a little ways more and his job would be complete.

"Hey, Vegeta! Do you know where you're going? Or are you just stalling?" Piccolo asked him evilly.

"It's just a little further. We're almost there now." Vegeta assured him. "Have a little patience my namekian friend." Then Vegeta scanned the area. 'Where are you Kakarrot?'

'Close. Just keep on coming. I'll give you the word when it's time for you to dart away.' Goku told him in his mind.

'You do that, Kakarrot.' Vegeta answered back. With that, he turned his speed up a notch, and Piccolo did the same.

'That's it...ok...NOW!' Goku commanded.

Vegeta, at that exact moment, made a beeline down into the trees and flew on hard towards the Son House. 'It's up to you now, Kakarrot.' Vegeta thought as he flew on.

Piccolo, confused by Vegeta's sudden move, paused before he tried to follow the departing prince. But just as he was about to enter the forest, he came to a sudden halt. Goku had appeared directly in front of him. "Goku," Piccolo said. His expression quickly changed from surprise to his usual challenging stare.

"Piccolo, fancy meeting you here." Goku said casually back to him.

"I could say the same thing about you." Piccolo commented. For a moment he only stared at Goku, but finally he spoke again. "Goku, we need to talk."

The silence hit again. Both looked strait into the other's eyes, but this time it was Goku to break the quiet. "Well talk. I have to get home, but we can talk on the way, if you like." Goku offered. Then he walked forward through the dense trees.

"What's going on, Goku?" Piccolo asked in a stern voice.

"What do you mean?" Goku asked back.

"I mean, why did Gohan and Chi-Me come to train at 5:00 in the morning claiming you kicked them out? Next, exactly three hours later, Vegeta showed up with a message from you saying for them to come home at once to work on something. Then Gohan made a smart comment at Vegeta as if it was nothing. As if things weren't strange enough, after they left, Vegeta stayed and spared with me. After four hours he decided that he wanted to chance battlefields. I followed him to find you appear right in front of me. I lack an explanation to any of this and expect you know something I don't know. What do you have to say to that, Goku?" Piccolo said and then awaited an answer.

Goku was silent for a moment, and still looking ahead answered. "Coincidence."

"That's your excuse? That it was only a coincidence?!" Piccolo barked.

"Calm down Piccolo, if you like, you can ask them yourself. Our house is just through this next grove of trees." Goku offered.

"Do you think your wife will allow it?" Piccolo asked, changing the subject because it was getting him nowhere fast.

"I think she will." Replied Goku, keeping his head pointed away from Piccolo, so he wouldn't see his smile.

Without another word, the two friends walked through a narrow path in the tree grove. The path lead to a clearing, and in the clearing was the Son House. Goku smiled inside, and walked up to the door. He the turned to face Piccolo, and said, "Are you coming or not?"

Piccolo paused, and then finally glared at Goku and proceeded in walking up to stand by Goku at the door. He stayed silent, clearly not pleased with the turnout of his most dreaded day of the year. "Let's get this over with," Piccolo growled.

"Ok, Piccolo..." Goku said trying to keep his emotions inside. As slowly and casually as possible, Goku opened the door to the house. And then...

"**SURPRISE!"**

Everyone had jumped out from behind chairs and tables in a very successful attempt to surprise Piccolo. Piccolo could only stand there in shock. He stared wide-eyed at his surroundings. The living room was filled from ceiling to floor with party favors, and a huge banner was hung from the wall that read "Happy Birthday Piccolo!" Green, pink, purple, and blue streamers hung from the ceiling, and balloons floated everywhere. And beyond that was a huge Birthday cake sitting on the dinning room table. On it, written in emerald-green icing was "Happy 27th Birthday Piccolo". Even Vegeta was there, standing with a mocking smile stretched across his face.

Then Chi-Me and Gohan walked out of the crowd; both of them were wearing their purple training gis. Gohan smiled cheerfully and hopped up onto his trainer's back. He laughed at the sudden stiffness that shot through Piccolo, leaned over his right shoulder and beamed into his shocked trainer's eyes. Next, Chi-Me jumped up into his strong namekian arms. She too looked up into his eyes and smiled. "Happy Birthday Piccolo!" They said together.

"So what do you think of all this, Piccolo?" Gohan asked. "Do you like it?"

"Yeah, Piccolo? What do you think?" Chi-Me asked enthusiastically.

To say the least, Piccolo was speechless. "Goku...?" He managed to say.

Talking to Gohan and Chi-Me, Goku said, "How about you two get down from there, and show Piccolo what you've done." He suggested.

"They...did all this...?" Piccolo asked him as Gohan and Chi-Me jumped down and then they each clutched one of his large green hands tightly.

"With a little bit of help, yes." Goku answered. "This whole thing was actually Gohan's idea."

"Yep!" Gohan said proudly.

Then Chi-Me cut in, "C'mon Piccolo!" She said as she tugged on his arm. "We'll explain everything after we show you what we've done!"

"Wait until you see the fighting ring we set up in the back, Piccolo!" Gohan added in.

"And the presents!" Chi-Me added in after him.

"Presents?!" Piccolo asked, stunned.

At that everyone else in the room burst into laughter. "Oh, c'mon Piccolo," Chi-Me urged her trainer forward. "Loosen up! This party's for you!"

------

Late that night, after the party had finished, Piccolo stood in a cave behind a huge waterfall and looked down upon his new pile of gifts. Goku, Gohan, and Chi-Me had given him a small wooden chest with a brilliantly carved top, and a golden encryption that read...

"_To our friend, trainer, mentor, and lifelong partner,_

_We give this chest._

_And remember that no matter what the future beholds,_

_That you shall always be in our hearts._

Goku, Gohan, and Chi-Me" 

Inside the chest lay the rest of the gifts: a drawing from Gohan; Chi-Me's poem; a bag of senzu beans from Goku; XL earplugs, a nail file, and a stress ball from Yamcha and Puar; a new XL water bottle from Tien and Choazu; a pure silver piccolo in a leather case from Krillin; and a few assorted Capsule Corp. capsules from Vegeta.

Piccolo smiled, and then closed the chest. The day hadn't turned out so bad after all. He flew out from behind the waterfall, and sat cross-legged in the air, preparing to meditate. As he closed his eyes, a vision of his father's face appeared in his mind. For the first time, he just simply shrugged him out of his mind. "You will no longer haunt me, Daimaou. You no longer have any power over me." In the darkness, a new vision entered his mind. It was of Goku, Gohan, and Chi-Me. In back of them he stood, and together they were happy. All four of them were smiling. "I thank you, my friends." Piccolo said softly. "You shall all be in my heart forever as well." With that said, he drifted off into deep meditation once more. And for the first time, he was truly content.

The End (Owari)


End file.
